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Creating a Microsoft SQL Server API in Less Than 5 minutes with DreamFactory

DreamFactory and Microsoft SQL Server
DreamFactory and Microsoft SQL Server
Do you have a ton of data sources and do not know how to expose them? Do you know you need a SQL Server API but don’t know where to begin to build it? Look no further, DreamFactory can take any database and generate a fully documented and secure REST API faster than making a sandwich. All you need is your database credentials and DreamFactory will handle the rest, instantly generating Swagger documentation and securing your API by way of API keys. Follow along with the blog or our video below!

Installing DreamFactory

In order to get started you must install DreamFactory, which is Open Source and gives you the ability to try out a numerous amount of popular databases. To spin up your own hosted environment for free click here.

Generating the SQL Server API

Now the fun part. Once you have DreamFactory up and running you will be on the Admin panel. From there you will navigate to the Services tab to connect your database for your API. For example I have selected a Microsoft SQL Server database but it is nearly identical for any database you will be connecting to. Connecting your database typically only requires filling out these 5 fields as shown below.

SQL Server API

Upon saving there will be a success window pop-up saying “Service saved successfully”. What it doesn’t tell you is all the magic it just did behind the scenes. In just that short amount of time, it generated your REST API. So now if you navigate to the API Docs tab you can see your new documentation for the API and actually interact with it via the “Try it out” button.

SQL Server API

Securing and Interacting with the API

I can end it here now that you have generated your API, but where is the fun in that? Now let’s actually see the API in action! First things first, let’s generate an API key to be paired with the API for security purposes. DreamFactory does not allow access to the API without being authenticated. Let’s navigate to the Roles tab and create a Role for our API. This Role with correspond with the API key so different users can have different privileges based off different keys.

SQL Server API

For my Role I have pointed it to the SQL Server Service we just created and told it to only allow GET calls on the endpoints. This will ensure anyone using this API key will not be able to, for example delete data from the database. We must now link this Role to an API key. If we now go to the Apps tab we can create a new API key with the corresponding Role.

SQL Server API

Once we hit save we are able to see the API key generated for our use. Just to show how it works I will be using Insomnia, a popular HTTP service, to call our DreamFactory API. I will call the customers table, passing the API key in the headers for authentication.

SQL Server API

Conclusion

As you can see I have access to our new API and how much time did that take? Way less time than building this API yourself! If you would like to find out exactly how much time and money DreamFactory can save you, check out our API calculator. Otherwise what are you waiting for? Go build your next application using DreamFactory already! If you have any questions about the platform, or just APIs in general, we’d love to hear from you! Contact us.
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API Calculator: Understanding the costs behind building an API-based application

Do you want to save money, deploy projects faster, and spend more time on developing application experiences that enthrall users? Then it’s practically a certainty APIs will play a critical role in your software development process. Accordingly, you’ll want to obtain a fairly accurate understanding of the cost and time required to building an API. But it’s important to understand that there’s much more to an API than just coding an interface to some data source such as a database. Whether you are planning on hiring a contractor or assign a new project to your team, an API calculator can help you understand the time and cost required to develop a mission-critical part of your next project. Continue reading “API Calculator: Understanding the costs behind building an API-based application”
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SQL DB REST APIs in Minutes, not Months

Would you like to access SQL data from your mobile, web or IOT apps?

If so, DreamFactory offers an easy and secure way to add a REST API to any SQL database in minutes, and supports 18 popular databases, among them MS SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, IBM DB2, Postgres, SAP SQL Anywhere, SAP Hana, MemSQL and MongoDB! All you have to do is use the DreamFactory platform to connect your database, then use it to auto-generate a REST API for your database – it’s that simple!

In this blog post we’ll show how to REST-enable any SQL database, which is free forever for the databases and other services covered by our open source software. Then we’ll show some simple examples of how to use the REST API to manage your SQL schema and data.

Interested in a live demo with one of our engineers? We’ll be happy to show you how it’s done for your particular use case! If you’d rather watch a video, check out DreamFactory Academy. Alternatively, you might want to check out our new guide, Getting Started with DreamFactory. It offers a comprehensive walkthrough of generating a database-backed API. You’ll learn how to generate the API, define a role and API key, and then interact with the API using a variety of queries. Finally, if you haven’t already checked out our free open source software, you can download it here. Continue reading “SQL DB REST APIs in Minutes, not Months”
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Changing An API Key For One of Your Apps In DreamFactory

So what happens if you make a mistake and expose your admin app api_key or just need to change api_key associated with one of your apps?  We have an easy workaround that doesn’t require you to have to change any of your endpoints or having to recreate an app, etc.  This article shows you how to access all of your app API keys via MySQL or, if you haven’t fully started exploring DreamFactory yet, the default SQLite database.

Continue reading “Changing An API Key For One of Your Apps In DreamFactory”
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The importance of loose coupling in REST API design

One of the most important ideas in the world of software engineering is the concept of loose coupling. In a loosely coupled design, components are independent, and changes in one will not affect the operation of others. This approach offers optimal flexibility and reusability when components are added, replaced, or modified. Conversely, a tightly coupled design means that components tend to be interdependent. Changes in a single component can have a system wide impact, with unanticipated and undesirable effects.

Continue reading “The importance of loose coupling in REST API design”
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What if Chuck Norris Wanted to Create a Service That Automated APIs?

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Chuck Norris Joke Enthusiasts Trust DreamFactory to Automate  APIs

Thanks to amusing Chuck Norris API database site The Internet Chuck Norris Database, you can have some fun and keep the Chuck Norris jokes flowing.  With the help of DreamFactory and our API automation tools, you will always have life-changing insights making those around you just a bit more intelligent, good looking and successful.  Who doesn’t need to understand such nuggets as:

Contrary to popular belief, the Titanic didn’t hit an iceberg. The ship was off course and ran into Chuck Norris while he was doing the backstroke across the Atlantic.

Continue reading “What if Chuck Norris Wanted to Create a Service That Automated APIs?”

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Dreamfactory and GraphQL

In the 2.11 release of Dreamfactory we added support for GraphQL, the open sourced query language written by Facebook.  You can now harness the power of GraphQL inside of the API automation & integration structure of Dreamfactory.  Both REST and GraphQL offer advantages and disadvantages depending on your use case. There are several articles and posts out there expanding on this, but let’s walk through how to incorporate this service in your Dreamfactory instance.  GraphQL is available in all of our product levels: Open Source, Silver and Gold. Continue reading “Dreamfactory and GraphQL”
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Introducing API Limits

Along with the release of DreamFactory 2.5.0, we added the ability to control and limit API calls to your DreamFactory instance on several levels. This feature is currently available in DreamFactory Gold. The API limits feature makes it easy to set limits on an entire DreamFactory instance, for a specific user, role, or service. Additionally, you can set limits for each user, where every user will get a separate counter.

Continue reading “Introducing API Limits”